Security

“There is increasing recognition of the dangers wildlife and forest crime pose not only to the environment but to the rule of law and stability, and of the potential for the criminal proceeds to fuel conflict and terrorism.”

A recent UN report on World Wildlife Crime has acknowledged the links between illegal wildlife trade and professional criminal groups involved in other transnational offences, such as drug trafficking, human trafficking and terrorism. In the report’s foreword, the Executive Director of the UN Office for Drugs and Crime, notes that “There is increasing recognition of the dangers wildlife and forest crime pose not only to the environment but to the rule of law and stability, and of the potential for the criminal proceeds to fuel conflict and terrorism”.

As stressed in the FAO report entitled Animal Welfare at the Heart of Sustainability, there is a need for animal welfare to be fundamental to sustainability; and a recognition that animal production and animal welfare are inextricably linked with environmental, ethical, political, economic, and social issues.